Style & beauty blog

Ipsy August Glam Bag 2014

September 1, 2014

Happy Labor Day! Hope everyone is able to enjoy a nice day off (and if you had to work today,I’m sorry. I wish you weren’t!) and catch up on some blog reading. ;)

I’m such a stalker when it comes to subscription boxes – I always love seeing what products everyone gets and what they think of them… even if I get the same ones! So I thought I’d share my Ipsy August Glam Bag with you and see what you think of mine. :)

Ipsy August 2014

J. Cat Beauty Flying Solo Eye Shadow in Half Naked – So first thing I do with beauty products these days is check the ingredient list. This shadow contains parabens, which I’m not a fan of. I allowed it to redeem itself in the form of gorgeous pigmentation or shimmer, and I was really let down. I had a hard time even seeing where I had swatched it, to be honest. Not impressed with this one. (.09 oz / Value $2.99)

Klorane Extra-gentle Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk – So this happened to arrive right around the time that my full-size version of this from Birchbox came. Pretty funny considering I’d never tried it before but had used my points on it from all the rave reviews. Of course I tried the little one out first, and I’m digging it. It does leave a little bit of the white stuff, but the residue isn’t quite as gross as some brands I’ve tried, and it combs out. It doesn’t make my hair feel wet like the Herbal Essence Dry Shampoo either. (1.06 oz / Value $6.46)

Dr. Brandt Pores No More Primer – Does this look familiar? Well, if it doesn’t, it should because I got it in last month’s Birchbox! And I didn’t like it then… so I’m assuming I’m still not going to like it. (.25 fl oz / Value $9.25)

Urban Decay Perversion Mascara – So the first time I tried this, I was like… really? What is this?! I have been using Benefit’s They’re Real and it’s amazing, but this is definitely a different look. To me, this is a more “natural” looking mascara. The type where I can do a quick coat and go and not look totally done up. The longer I’ve used it, the more I’m liking it. Apparently they also have a lash primer if you really want to kick it up a notch too. (.1 fl oz / Value $5.50)

Jersey Shore Sun Mongongo Nutrient Dense Anti-Aging Lip Conditioner – Okay, seriously these guys need to cut down on the length of that product name. Yeesh. Anyways, this smells really good, like tropical fruits and summer. Love that, and the conditioning seems to be on point too. I’ve been using this at bed time and am notcing much less cracking and peeling (I’m a serial lip licker/biter) of my lips in general. (.15 oz / Value $5.50)

Overall, value-wise this was a great month for Ipsy with a value of over $29, which I only paid $10 via monthly subscription. While I enjoyed receiving the samples, a few weren’t really for me this month, and I’m finding that to be the case with each glam bag that I’ve received.

As much as I’m fond of receiving Ipsy, I’m not sure how many of the same products I need to receive over and over again. What do you think, should I keep Ipsy or Birchbox, or stick with both?

Post navigation

62 thoughts on “Ipsy August Glam Bag 2014”

I subscribed to ipsy for a while and then cancelled, the bags were not great quality, and that was really the point for me, because I’m a bag fiend, I say cancel. I really am considering birch box though, and I love Julep Maven, the polish is so good!

I love Julep but since I’ve been with them for a year, I have a lot of colors and now many are very similar! Ipsy just isn’t my favorite compared to Birchbox, but I may keep it for a bit longer to see if it gets better.

I got both Birchbox and Ipsy for a while, then ended up quitting Ipsy because they sent more stuff on average that I never used. Which of the two do you love more at the moment? It’s not like you can’t rejoin later if you miss it.

I like Birchbox because I feel like the quality of the products is better, even if the sample sizes are smaller sometimes. I may stick with ipsy for a few months in order to earn enough points to get a reward, then just stick with Birchbox!

I get both Ipsy and Birchbox, but I am leaning towards canceling my Birchbox, Birchbox has too many skincare samples for me, but I do like the points system. I will probably end up keeping both. Haha. :)

One of Clinique’s mascaras is like that, a more of an everyday nothing special but still a lil’ somethin’ to the eyes, it’s in a green tube. I’ll note that next time I spot this U.D at Sephora. Love the ipsy makeup bag itself this month. Stripes or polkadots are always cute to me.

The brush on Perversion is pretty cool, so I was surprised when I used it and didn’t get super awe-inspiring lashes. I like the formula overall though, its not clumpy, and it’s not flaky either. I think its worth a try before you buy though – I don’t think its for everyone!

This months box was so so. The best thing for sure was the Urban Decay mascara. I have both Ipsy and Birchbox, but they month this month werent that great for me, I am so afraid that right when I unsubscribe they will be great again. lol..

I do love Birchbox, but I don’t know if I could choose between the two. I did get two of these products – the primer and the dry shampoo – in my Birchbox in the last few months, so I don’t know if crossover is common. I just love the Birchbox rewards system.

Birchbox does have a far better reward system! I think I will probably stick with Ipsy for a few more months, and if I don’t love it still, cash out my reward points and stick with just Birchbox! I got dry shampoo (different brand) in my Birchbox this month too, and then the primer was a repeat for me too so seems like crossover is fairly common.

I’ve never tried the product, but I do admire the woman behind the brand. :) I’ve tried Birchbox, but as much as I liked the breadth of products, I found that I could never use them up fast enough… as a result, I had tons of sample-sized products after a few months. So, I’m taking a break from subscription services for now… I like researching products and getting the ones that sound like they’ll be the best for me. Maybe we need a makeup/skincare subscription service that’s customized based on skin type and coloration/style pref. :)

That’s about where I am at too.. I have a ton of samples in storage, and I’m trying to use them up as I get them but it doesn’t always work out. I do really enjoy trying them and getting new things, but I’ll probably need to take a break at some point too!

Haha I know right? Birchbox is my favorite between the two, I think the quality of the samples is better, though they are sometimes a bit smaller. I’m posting my Birchbox review next Tuesday, so you’ll be able to see what I got last month then! :)